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Gateway To Success: St. Louis Small Business Owners In Growth ModeThe majority of small business owners across the nation are looking to maintain their business at its current size, however, in the city of St. Louis owners are looking to significantly grow their business, according to The Hartford's 2015 Small Business Success Study. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160429005114/en/ "At The Hartford, it is important for us to understand everything we can about the small business owners we insure in order to better prepare and protect them from the unexpected," said Stephanie Bush, executive vice president, Small Commercial insurance at The Hartford. "We also know how critical small businesses are to the local community. As a St. Louis native, I am excited to see the impact the entrepreneurial spirit is having in my home city." The study found that 56 percent of St. Louis owners are looking to grow significantly, which includes a large increase in sales, revenue, the number of employees and the hours they work, compared with 33 percent of national owners. Fifty-five percent of small business owners nationally would rather maintain their business at its current size compared with only 39 percent of owners in St. Louis. Although St. Louis small business owners are focused on growing their business, the study found that 77 percent of St. Louis owners say they are conservative in the overall level of risk they are taking with their business, which is consistent with their national peers.
Hiring, Feeling Successful Of those who have not hired or not hired as much as they would have liked, 36 percent say it's because they are taking on the additional responsibilities themselves, compared to 26 percent nationally. Thirty-two percent cite a lack of qualified talent, compared to 17 percent nationally. The study also found that 83 percent of St. Louis owners say they feel successful about how their business is operating now, compared with 73 percent nationally. The top three things local owners say are important to their definition of success are: to do something I feel passionate about or enjoy (2 percent), to make enough money to have a comfortable lifestyle (72 percent) and to increase the profitability of the business (70 percent).
Panel Discussion Today: Marketing Your Small Business Panelists include:
Media is invited to attend today's event.
SBSS Metholodology For more information on these survey results, visit www.thehartford.com/successstudy. For more news about The Hartford, visit: http://newsroom.thehartford.com/.
About The Hartford HIG-C Some of the statements in this release may be considered forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. We caution investors that these forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results may differ materially. Investors should consider the important risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ. These important risks and uncertainties include those discussed in our 2015 Annual Report on Form 10-K, subsequent Quarterly Reports on Forms 10-Q, and the other filings we make with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We assume no obligation to update this release, which speaks as of the date issued. From time to time, The Hartford may use its website to disseminate material company information. Financial and other important information regarding The Hartford is routinely accessible through and posted on our website at http://ir.thehartford.com. In addition, you may automatically receive email alerts and other information about The Hartford when you enroll your email address by visiting the "Email Alerts" section at http://ir.thehartford.com.
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